Real Science Exchange-Dairy

Guests:  Dr. Gonzalo Ferreira from Virginia Tech and Dr. Bill Weiss from The Ohio State University

A Journal Club podcast is a staff and fan favorite, and joining us for today’s Journal Club is Dr. Gonzalo Ferreira from Virginia Tech and Dr. Bill Weiss from The Ohio State University. Dr. Ferreira will be discussing his paper about including alfalfa in multigravida Holsteins. 

Dr. Ferreira starts with an overview of his research and said that he did a preliminary trial in Virginia Tech and saw that the urine pH was being decreased by using a product called polyhalite. (5:36) 

Dr. Weiss pointed out that the study had a fair number of clinical hypocalcemia, about 10-15%, which is high. (27:39) 

Dr. Ferreira said that in testing the polyhalite, he included between 400-500 grams per cup per day. And everything was going well in the case of Calcium Chloride; it is stronger, so you can add less and have the same acidification process. (37:03) 

Dr. Ferreira wrapped up by encouraging people doing research not to get stuck in a theory. Sometimes you need to get out of the box and try different things. (48:45) 

You can find Dr. Ferreira’s paper here: https://www.journalofdairyscience.org/article/S0022-0302(23)00170-4/fulltext

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Today’s episode was filmed at the American Dairy Science Association Annual Meeting in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Joining us are the ADSA organizers and research winners to discuss their projects. Dr. Clay Zimmerman is our co-host this week. 

Our first guests are Dr. Corwin Nelson, University of Florida and Kari Estes, Balchem. Dr. Nelson is the overall committee chair for the conference and said more than 1,300 abstracts were submitted. Of those, 1,254 were accepted to present at the ADSA conference. (1:44) Ms. Estes, who was a poster judge mentioned she looks for the aesthetics of the poster, but was also impressed with the rigor of research, especially with the winning posters. (5:22) 

Our next guests are presentation winner, Ursula Abou-Rjeileh, Michigan State University and her advisor, Dr. Andres Contreras, Michigan State University. Ursula is a second-time winner and her research focuses on the effects of fatty acids on lipid accumulation and mitochondrial function in the post-partum phase. Her research showed that supplementing oleic acid with pulmonary acid, especially post-partum means cows don’t lose a lot of body weight. Her presentation name is Oleic acid promotes lipid accumulation and improves

mitochondrial function in bovine adipocytes.(10:11) 

Our third set of guests includes master’s poster winner Corienne Gammariello, The Ohio State University - Wooster and her advisor Dr. Ben Enger, The Ohio State University - Wooster. Corienne spoke about their research methods and how unique they were. She used dead bacteria and was able to elicit an immune response of an udder half, they used a split udder design model. Her poster title is Killed Staphylococcus aureus intramammary challenge

induces subclinical mastitis and clear changes in milk composition but not milk yield.(15:11) 

Next, we have Richard Lobo, winner of the Ph.D poster contest, from the University of Florida. Richard’s research was trying to replace soybean milk with algae. He saw that replacing 100% of soybean meal results in no fermentation. (20:15) More research is needed, because it is not yet known if protein that was not degraded in the rumen is going to be degraded later on, and absorbed. So we are still in the process of understanding how to use these protein sources with dairy cows. His poster title is Utilization of algae biomass as a partial replacement for

soybean meal in the diet of dairy cows in vitro. (21:25) 

Our last guests are Luke Quian, Cornell University and Connor McCabe, University of California Davis, who are the President and Vice President of the GSD (Graduate Student Division) at ADSA. Connor said that scientific presentation is a large reason to attend ADSA, but there are equal benefits and opportunities through networking, career development and professional pieces. (28:52) 

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Guests:  Dr. Billy Brown, Kansas State University; Dr. Heather White, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Kelli Brost, University of Illinois; Dr. Jim Drackley, University of Illinois; Dr. Sergio Martinez Monteagudo, New Mexico State University; Jair Parales Giron, Michigan State University; Tess Stahl, University of New Hampshire; Dr. Pete Erickson, University of New Hampshire;  Dr. Vinicius Machado, Texas Tech University

Today’s podcast is the second podcast filmed at the American Dairy Science Association Annual Meeting in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Joining us are researchers with abstracts of interest chosen by the Balchem technical team.

Our first guests are Dr. Billy Brown, Kansas State University, and Dr. Heather White, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Brown said results from feeding choline in utero showed no differences in the weight of the animal or ribeye areas, but they did have greater marbling, which is exciting. (4:19) 

Dr. Brown’s poster title is: Effect of in utero choline exposure on Angus × Holstein carcass characteristics

Our second guest is Dr. Sergio Martinez Monteagudo from New Mexico State University. Dr. Martinez Monteagudo mentioned that while upcycling is not new and is used in other industries, it is more difficult to do in the food industry. Dr. Martinez Monteagudo turned lactose into something more used, sweeteners. 

Dr. Martinez Monteagudo’s presentation title: Upcycling strategies of dairy byproducts and waste for value-added applications.

Next up is Kelli Brost and Dr. Jim Drackley, both from the University of Illinois. Kelli found in her research that there is an effect on cow’s milk protein and fat percentages when looking at summer versus non-summer seasons. When you look at winter versus non-winter or winter versus summer, she saw the exact opposite. (27:50) 

Kelli’s Poster title is: Relationships between birth and calving season on first lactation performance of Holstein dairy cows in the Midwestern USA

Now, we’re hearing from Jair Parales Giron from Michigan State University. Jair’s research showed that fat has different effects from a low or high-starch diet. He also recommended that if you can’t have a high-energy or low-starch diet, fatty-acid supplementation could work. 

Jair’s presentation title is: Fatty acid supplementation interacts with starch content to alter production responses during the immediate postpartum in dairy cows

Joining us next are Tess Stahl and Dr. Pete Erickson from the University of New Hampshire. Tess studied the effects of a DCAD diet on Jersey cows. she found that minus 40 cals without and with nicotinic acid or niacin were equally feed efficient. And then there was a decrease with the minus 80. So she assumes that minus 80 is too harsh of a DCAD. (54:24)

Tess’ poster title is: Evaluation of colostrum quantity, quality, and bioactive compounds from Jersey cows fed two concentrations of dietary cation-anion difference with or without nicotinic acid and its effect on calf performance

Lastly, we have Dr. Vinicius Machado from Texas Tech University. Dr. Vinicius didn’t have any solid conclusions in his research but did notice that raising beef-on-dairy calves takes a different focus and approach than dairy cows or traditional beef cows. Throughout his portion, he hypothesizes what some options are. (1:38) 

Dr. Vinicius Machado’s presentation title is: Management of beef-on-dairy calves: Should we raise them differently?

Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the additional highlights from the 2023 ADSA Annual Meeting in future podcast episodes. 

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Guests: Omid McDonald, Vodkow; Andres Ortega & Dr. Mike Van Amburgh, Cornell University; Matheus Santos & Dr. Eduardo Ribeiro, University of Guelph; Dr. Faith Reyes, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Mariana Marinho and Dr. José Santos, University of Florida; and Dr. Alex Tebbe, Purina Mills

Today’s episode was filmed at the American Dairy Science Association Annual Meeting in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Joining us are researchers with abstracts of interest chosen by the Balchem technical team.

The first guest is Omid McDonald, founder of Vodcow, the chosen drink at tonight’s pubcast. Vodcow is made with a dairy byproduct called milk permeate. The sugar is fermented and turned into alcohol, with which they make vodka and blend it with Canadian Cream. (4:11) 

Our second guest is Andres Ortega and Dr. Mike Van Amburgh from Cornell University. In Andres's research, to represent mp, they tried to show metabolizing all proteins and break that down into the individual essential and nonessential amino acids. They created two diets; one that met all of the MP requirements and one that didn’t. Based on the difference of MP there, they knew how much they would infuse. (12:07) 

Andre's presentation is titled:  Abomasal infusion of essential and non-essential amino acids to evaluate energy and amino acid utilization, productive efficiencies, and metabolism in lactating dairy cattle. 

Next in our lineup are Matheus Santos and Dr. Eduardo Ribeiro from the University of Guelph. Matheus’ research found that lower feed intake and greater body weight had a less positive energy balance. A negative energy balance can lead to high immunosuppression and development of clinical disease. (24:14) 

Matheus' poster is titled: Prepartum feed intake level is associated with transition metabolism and subsequent milk production in dairy cows. 

Our third guest is Dr. Faith Reyes from the University of Wisconsin. Dr. Faith said that in dairies, we would like to see decreased competition. Previous literature has shown a linear relationship when you increase the stocking density leads to increased competition. In her research, Dr. Faith found that there was the most competition at a two-to-one stocking density. (35:02) 

Faith’s research is titled: Individual feeding consistency across stocking densities and feed efficiency in lactating cows. 

Joining us now is Mariana Marinho and Dr. Jose Santos from the University of Florida. Mariana mentioned that more efficient cows have improved rumination per kilogram of intake. More efficient cows also have lower pH and more concentration of ammonia nitrogen. With the findings from her research, Mariana suggests that the site of digestion plays a more important role in differentiating more efficient versus less efficient cows. (52:45) 

Mariana’s presentation is titled: Associations between residual feed intake(RFI) and digestibility or hepatic mitochondrial respiration in Holstein cows. 

Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the additional highlights from the 2023 ADSA Annual Meeting in future podcast episodes. 

Lastly, we are joined by Alex Tebbe from Purina Mills. Alex is focused on transition cows, both the dry period and fresh period and how they are so influential to the cow’s long-term performance. Alex said that we could hone in on the nutrition of dry cows and fresh cows to produce a lot of milk in the future. (59:52)

Alex’s presentation is titled: Dairy nutrition to improve feed utilization - Recognizing the contributions of ADSA Fellow Dr. Bill Weiss beyond prevention of metabolic diseases: Feeding transition dairy cows for optimal performance. 

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Guests: Dr. Lance Baumgard, Iowa State University and Dr. Jim Drackley, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Our Real Science Exchange pubcast always has leading scientists and industry professionals discussing the latest ideas and trends, and tonight we have two very well-known guests. Dr. Lance Baumgard and Dr. Jim Drackley join us to discuss cow management and the dogma that has developed over the years. 

Dr. Baumgard kicks off by explaining the dogma of the transition period - two metabolites reduce the animal’s immune system and predispose them to health disorders. (5:38) 

Dr. Drackley continued by saying he was influenced by research that could show in a clinical case of ketosis, there is an underlying subclinical, perhaps inflammatory pressure, causing the problem. (20:39) 

Dr. Baumgard mentioned utilizing ketones comes at a metabolic disadvantage: a loss of energy. So what could cows be doing if they’re able to increase their feed intake enough so they don’t have to make ketones? (27:18) 

Dr. Drackley said the million-dollar question is if inflammation is the key, what do we do about it? How do we prevent it or treat it? (31:38) 

Dr. Baumgard explained his thought process is that if even healthy cows have some level of immune activation going on in the transition period, some of this subclinical hypocalcemia that’s occurring in the transition period could be caused by immune activation. (43:50)

Dr. Drackley said as we select for high-milk production, perhaps part of that is enhanced ability to use ketones. The idea of a tenant of high milk production is you’ve got the time of lower insulin and high growth hormone driving lactation. Those are all tied up with genetic selection.  (46:40) 

Dr. Baumgard wrapped up by saying from a producer or veterinarian perspective, it’s easy to treat and get out, but what really needs to take place is a full examination; where did this immune activation come from? (54:56)

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Guests:  Evine van Riemsdijk from NEDAP Livestock Management and Stefan Borchardt from the Free University of Berlin

In this episode of the Real Science exchange pubcast Scott leads a discussion on cow monitoring technology and its benefits for cows, farmers and the environment. 

Ms. van Riemsdijk gives some history of cow monitoring, stating it started for identification of an animal and the feeding station for the purpose of separating milk. (6:58) 

Ms. van Riemsdijk said the sensors help see heat behavior as a whole in your barn, they help you find a scout and who has shorter heat periods, when heat starts and helps calculate optimal insemination time, even when you are not in the barn. (15:02) 

Mr. Borchardt said that a major drawback of the industry is integration, bringing these different technologies together into the herd management software. As an industry, how can we bring data and programs together to make smarter decisions? (26:29) 

Ms. van Riemsdijk said the sensors can be used while breeding cows. It can also be used as an intervention to understand why cows are not cycling correctly. (39:11) 

Mr. Borchardt said that when farmers adopt the sensor system, they realize there are some cows already showing a health alarm and most of the time they wouldn’t realize these cows are sick without the sensor. (47:23) 

In summary, Mr. Borchardt said that with farms, sensor technology and increased genomic data, we can get to a place where we are managing cows on an individual basis like precision feeding and reproductive management. (52:14) 

Ms. van Riemsdijk concluded by saying you can use data points from the sensor in heat behavior in the voluntary waiting period to make more strategic decisions with other experts on the farm. (58:40) 

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Guests: Katharina Unger & Dr. Pratibha Yadav

Joining the pubcast to discuss insect protein as an alternative for the future is Katharina Unger and Dr. Pratibha Yadav. 

Unger is the CEO and founder of LIVIN Farms and an expert in edible insects and food innovation. She led the conversation by introducing her background and briefly mentioning the transformation of using insects as food protein. 8:35

Unger said she started questioning early in her career the required resources needed to produce livestock at a larger scale. After many years of research, carbon emissions studies and searching, an additive that can grow protein on the smallest possible footprint came to the forefront; insect protein. 9:41

Unger mentioned insect protein is highly digestible and for animals has an attractive taste. In addition, the environmental impacts of turning waste into protein is an effective organic byproduct. 11:05

Dr. Yadav discussed how the opportunity to utilize the black soldier fly was a decision based on its opportunity to offer low quality substrates and synthesize biomolecules into amino acids quickly. 19:30

While LIVIN Farms continues to have projects in Europe, Unger mentioned the team also does additional research in other regions which allows a wide variety of demographics to study when analyzing substrates and improvement factors. 23:17

Dr. Yadav said byproducts are already there for certain insect substrates and byproducts. In fact, she went on to say it’s a practical option as livestock production systems can be fed insects by crushing, mixing or distributing them as a way to save on costs and processing fees as well. 32:52 

While the entire insect larva process is vertical farming, Unger mentioned from the start of production to the automated warehouse and then into the two layer systems, they are never dependent on the soil. 39:10

In an effort to produce with the smallest possible footprint, the input substrate must have an adequate amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates during the nutrient composition, Dr. Yadav mentioned. 41:43

Wrapping up the conversation, Unger summarized the visionary work being done with insects as protein alternatives and restated the value the resource has on the planet's ability to secure the food system and provide indefinite solutions for the future. 1:07:25

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Guests: Lara Moody with the Institute for Feed Education and Research and Dr. Steve Lerner with Chr. Hansen

Gathering around the pubcast to discuss key environmentally sustainable animal agriculture practices are Lara Moody and Dr. Steve Lerner. 

Visionary leader and executive director for The Institute for Feed Education and Research (IFEEDER), Lara Moody, shared her background in stewardship and sustainability. She then introduced Dr. Lerner with Chr. Hansen. 2:30

Leading the conversation, Moody described the sustainability roadmap project and highlighted the value IFEEDER has found in delivering measurable sustainability metrics. In addition, she touched on the three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social and governance. 

A roadmap project started 18 months ago and is aimed entirely at gauging a bigger picture of the sustainability landscape. Moody said it involves everything from understanding supply chain needs and how to support the industry. 14:51

Shifting gears to, Dr. Lerner shared that Chr. Hansen was founded by Christian Deli AOR Hansen who was the first to extract rennet from calves and now remains a highly effective research partner. 23:06

After deciding how to best bring sustainability innovation to the table by gathering with all different kinds of people, Moody shared that the Sustainable Agriculture Summit was founded in 2021 with the idea to collaborate about the World Wildlife Fund. Additionally, she said the summit collectively brought together the whole value chain to work on solutions, understanding that feed is 40 to 80 percent of the footprint for livestock and poultry production. 27:50

As dairy farms continue to consolidate, Dr. Lerner stated that he believes operational management has also improved through the addition of inoculants in their seed treatment, ensuring proper fermentation and staying focused on efficiency. 38:21

Not only does improving the overall health of both plants and animals increase nutrient absorption but research shows drastic benefits to gut health as well. So how are you speaking about sustainability? 

Wrapping up the conversation, Dr. Moody shared on the importance of shaping your story to highlight individual cost savings, efficiencies and the importance of utilizing the toolkit for the entire value chain. 57:47

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Guests: Dr. Bill Weiss, The Ohio State University and Dr. Corwin Nelson, University of Florida

Joining together for another Journal Club to discuss vitamin D as a lactation influence on dairy cows are dairy leaders and nutritional experts Dr. Bill Weiss and Dr. Corwin Nelson. 

Dr. Weiss, professor emeritus at The Ohio State University spent nearly 33 years of his career focused on dairy cattle nutrition and has published more than 140 journal articles. He began the conversation, introducing the article “Effect of prepartum source and amount of vitamin D supplementation on lactation performance of dairy cows” and mentioning Mike Piondexter as the first publishing author. 2:20

Discussing the research study in depth was Dr. Corwin Nelson, Piondexter’s advisor. He began by introducing the Journal of Dairy Science article, highlighting the nutritional effects of supplementing vitamin D and the connection between feeding two different forms. 6:15

Dr. Nelson shared studies dating back to 1980 to indicate some vitamin D degradation. But added that most rations have between 30,000 to 50,000 units of vitamin D3 on top of basic international units. 9:40

In the article, the abstract shows productive measures such as body weight and condition, dry matter intake and factors. However, Dr. Weiss mentioned the majority of research data derived from cows during their last few weeks of weaning. 13:21

Dr. Nelson said that research also analyzed net energy between using colostrum and vitamin D, adding that feeding the 25-hydroxyvitamin D in the ration resulted in higher results of energy. 14:14

When looking at energy corrected milk, Dr. Nelson said in about 42 days he’s seen interaction between cows producing the most milk and the three milligrams per day of 25-hydroxyvitamin D supplementation. 19:01

Anti-inflammatory is another mode of action vitamin D has shown to effectively decrease in cows with lower serum. In fact, three to four weeks is the optimum benefit when it comes to supplementing less than the elevated 25-hydroxyvitamin D recommendation. 32:55

It was also mentioned that there may be a possible United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant opportunity to look at the long term effects of cow responses, maternal and neonatal vitamin D nutrition and a more focused approach to the immune system are all upcoming research modes of actions. 42:27

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Guests: Dr. Mike Van Amburgh (Cornell University), Dr. Jose Santos (University of Florida), Dr. Heather White (University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Gathering together at the 2023 Tri-State Dairy Nutrition Conference for the Balchem Mini-Symposium “New Revelations in Transition Cow Nutrition” are speakers Dr. Mike Van Amburgh, Dr. Jose Santos and Dr. Heather White. 

The mini symposium featured topics such as better understanding essential versus required nutrients, choline research as a nutritional requirement and insights on gaining the next five pounds of milk. 

Dr. Van Amburgh of Cornell University led the discussion, summarizing his report on essential and required nutrients such as amino acids and choline. He mentioned when formulating diets for lactating cows, it’s important to understand there are other nutrients that aren’t necessarily essential but are required. 4:53

Shifting the conversation, Dr. Van Amburgh said establishing an optimum value has now replaced nutrient requirements based on energy. Recent evidence indicates that feeding rumen protected choline (RPC) significantly improves milk production. In addition, supplementing choline shows an increase in low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) output from the liver.  7:21

Highlighting her research in supplementing choline, Dr. White shared that studies show a 20 to 25% increase from cells and culture after incorporating the nutrient. She added choline also increased the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) capacity, indicating a shift in nutrient incorporation. 11:45 

As milk increases when infusing non-essential amino acids or even by using meta-analysis to supplement choline, how is glucose supply impacted? 

Dr. Santos, who focused his research on meta-analysis, said that even with the concurrent increase in dry matter intake, efficiency has still increased. He went on to say that studies from Wisconsin and Michigan highlight the basic understanding of a cow's variable ability to synthesis glucose differently with the ability to produce at least two kilograms more milk consistently. 21:30

Within some of Dr. White’s meta-analysis research, she mentioned mixing choline into the total mixed ration (TMR) allowed for the opportunity to analyze exact intake and also outcome production or energy corrected milk (ECM) fat. 34:08

If cost isn’t an issue, Dr. Santos mentioned that he’s seen experiments feeding choline longer than 21 days postpartum and into 105 days at 12.9 grams. While no major benefit showed at that dosage amount, he added that other studies have shown benefits feeding choline longer and into mid lactation. 39:41

Switching gears, Scott Sorrell, podcast host and director of global marketing for Balchem asked Dr. Santos about epigenetics and the effect choline has on behavioral changes. 44:59

Sharing that epigenetics shifts genomes without changing sequences, Dr. Santos mentioned that through a two-by-two factorial experiment on choline, research indicates calf behaviors shifting and performance increasing. He went on to mention that history shows 30% of calves that were born from control dams and fed colostrum from control dams died from lipopolysaccharide challenges. 51:10

Wrapping up the conversation, Dr. Zimmerman, podcast co-host and technical services manager for Balchem said that research speaks for itself. He stated that higher producing cows continue to prove choline as a required nutrient for transition cows. 55:50

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